A new generation of Chippewa Valley residents is learning skills once passed down at home — sewing on a button, mending a sweater, quilting and wood carving — through the School of Heritage Arts in Chippewa Falls.
The school is a collective organized by the Valley Art Association and based at the Cardinal Community Learning Center, 140 W. Elm St. in Chippewa Falls. Classes cover quilting, wood carving, spinning, basket weaving, sewing and more.
Valley Art Association President Kathy Stockton-Behnke said she proposed the school about a year and a half ago to teach arts that, in her words, are not being taught by grandma anymore. The first class, counted cross-stitch, was held last spring.
Instruction now includes embroidery, weaving, macrame, beading, rug hooking, spinning, basic sewing and counted cross stitch. The association said class costs are kept accessible, with the group providing funds to support supplies and instruction in Chippewa Falls.
Organizers say younger and middle-aged students are blending nostalgia with modern creativity, and classes are usually scheduled for early afternoons or evenings to accommodate working adults. Upcoming classes are posted through the Cardinal Community Learning Center.
